Which wheel moved, the steering wheel or one of the tires?
Impact doesn't damage the clock spring. Two things can cause a problem. The first has to do with the fact the internal wound-up ribbon cable has a limited range it can go through. That closely matches the number of rotations of the steering wheel from full-left to full-right. If the clock spring is installed incorrectly, or if the steering shaft becomes disconnected, which allows the steering wheel to be rotated an unlimited number of times, that cable will either reach the end of its travel, then be torn off one end, or it will unwind as far as possible, then fold over on itself. Doing that multiple times will cause it to snap.
The other problem has to do when the steering wheel air bag deploys in a crash. The high heat from the rapidly-burning rocket fuel usually melts the electrical connector behind the air bag. The ribbon cable is still okay, but the clock spring is replaced, along with the air bag, because of that melted connector.
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Monday, June 10th, 2019 AT 6:49 PM